Treating ocd

• Outline the biological treatment for OCD?

  SSRIs, alternative drugs (SNRIs and tricyclics)

  Drug therapies are usually paired with CBT as the drugs will reduce the emotional characteristics of OCD which allows patients to interact with therapy more easily.  
• elaborate on SSRIs as a treatment for OCD?

  The main biological treatment for OCD is SSRIs (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors). By preventing the reabsorption of and breakdown of serotonin, SSRIs effectively increase levels of serotonin in the synapse, which results in the neurotransmitter remaining in the synaptic cleft and therefore transmitted to the orbiofrontal cortex to inhibit neural activity. 
• elaborate on alternative drugs as a treatment for OCD?

  Alternative drugs include SNRI's (Serotonin-Noradrenaline Reuptake Inhibitors), which work in a similar way to SSRIs, but as well as increasing levels of serotonin, they also increase another neurotransmitter called noradrenaline. And Tricyclics which are reserved for those that SSRIs do not work for: It is an older antidepressant and has more severe side effects than SSRIs, so is usually only used on those that other drug therapies have not worked. 
• outline the strengths of the biological treatments for OCD?

  research support

  cost effectiveness

  more accessible
• elaborate on research support as a strength of biological treatments to OCD?

  Although drug therapy doesn't 'cure' OCD, it allows for a significant improvement of suffering by reducing OCD behaviours. Greist et al. (1995) conducted a meta-analysis where they reviewed placebo-controlled trials of the effects of 4 drugs on OCD, they found all 4 drugs were significantly more effective than the placebo, additionally, Soomro et al found that 70% of adult patients with OCD who have received SSRI treatment have experienced an improvement in symptoms. 
• elaborate on cost effectivness as a strength of the biological explanations for OCD?

  A second strength is the cost effectiveness of drug therapy as they are cheaper than other psychological treatments, which is preferred for health services that have a budget they must adhere to. 
• elaborate on accessibility as a strength of the biological treatments for OCD?

   Furthermore, drug therapy is non-disruptive to people's lives as they do not have to give up time to attend therapy, meaning its is more accessible and helpful. 
• outline the weaknesses of the biological treatments for OCD?

  side effects

  high relapse rates

  publication bias
• elaborate on side effects as a weakness for the biological treatments for ocd?

  By inhibiting serotonin uptake in all areas of the brain, SSRIs can cause side effects such as blurred vision, irritability, indigestion, and sleep pattern disruption. This can be overcome by mixing drug and talking therapy as suggested by NICE (The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence). The therapist can help with the side effects of the drug and ensure the patient still takes them whilst the drugs can often work faster than the therapy so the sufferer feels some progress.
• elaborate on relapse rates as a weakness for biological treatments for OCD?

  Another limitation of drug treatments is the high relapse rates once patients stop taking the drug. Simpson (2004) found that 45% of cases in 12 weeks relapsed, compared to only 12% of patients who had CBT. This suggests, that drug therapy is not an efficient treatment of OCD. 
• Elaborate on publication bias as a weakness of the biological treatments for OCD?

  Finally, publication bias has been shown, in the sense that the positive results are more likely to be published than not. This was proposed by Goldacre (2013), as drug companies sponsor the drug trials, they selectively publish positive outcomes for the drugs their sponsors are selling. This means that the effectiveness of drug therapies could have been over exaggerated and they are not as successful as research shows.